Race Matters: What we CAN do

Just came back from a summit on “Race matters.”  It was geared to those of us in the child welfare system, including educators, social service providers, judges, lawyers, and organizational leaders.  The point was that while the US has made progress, the absolute fact is that in many ways institutional racism (often unintentional, but real nonetheless) still operates to decrease equality of OPPORTUNITIES for minorities.

We learned about the goal of awareness, and of changing institutional biases through that awareness to reach a higher level of equity, which in the end will create more avenues to higher incomes and better standards of living for minority communities:  NOT  by taking something away from the haves, but through the tools gained by increasing true equality of OPPORTUNITY (more resources for education, health care, etc) adding to the near-nothingness of the have-nots. 

Awareness and education are crucial to dispelling myths and prejudices based on those myths.  It’s a huge task and seems beyond our ability to control.

Leaving I was reminded of the serenity prayer:  "God grant me the courage to change what I can, the serenity to accept what I can’t and the wisdom to know the difference.”  We can’t just wave a wand and make everybody see the whole truth,and  to have a perfect political and social system that reflects that truth overnight.

BUT, what we CAN do is speak truth at every opportunity.  To never take part in hateful dialogue and call it out whenever we’re confronted with it, whether it be racist jokes, idle talk, group discussions, whatever. 

What we CAN do is to be the best people we can be every day.  Teach our children that it’s not your tennis shoes you or whatever else you wear, but what’s inside you that counts—your character, your ideals.  We  CAN take the high road, think good, think positive, ENCOURAGE others and look for opportunities, always keeping hope alive.  We can share this positivity, we can live it, we can encourage it.  Then, little by little it spreads and spreads and spreads.  It starts with me, it starts with you.

Sunday school basics:  think of others as well as yourself, do good, be honest, work hard, play fair, love everybody, pray for everybody, help whoever you can.  THIS WE CAN DO!